Man arrested after he climbed Buckingham Palace gate and knocked on door while Queen was sleeping inside
A 22-year-old man has been arrested after climbing over the front gates of Buckingham Palace and banging down the doors of the residence. The 93-year-old Queen was in the residence at the time. The incident took place around 2 am on Wednesday, July 10, and it took the Met police nearly four minutes to get to him, according to The Sun. He has been arrested on suspicion of trespass and it is not being considered a terror-related incident.
The publication's source said, "There was an intruder at the Palace while the Queen lay sleeping in her bedroom and he was on the loose for a good few minutes before the cops arrested him. He was determined to get inside the palace and was banging down the doors but, thank goodness, this time everything was locked up."
A spokesman for the Met Police said that he did not have any weapons at the time. "Officers have arrested a man on suspicion of trespass, contrary to section 128 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005. The man was not found in possession of any offensive weapons and the incident is not being treated as terrorist-related." The Queen made an appearance on the same day and went on to present the Queen’s Medal for Music.
The intruder made the daring entry almost 37 years to the day when, on July 9, 1982, a man named Michael Fagan snuck into the palace and managed to enter the Queen's bedroom. She reportedly spoke to him and kept him busy in conversation until the police arrived. He was later found to be an unemployed decorator and a schizophrenic.
The source said that there is a fear now of "copycat operations" after the original incident. "This intruder got into the Palace almost 37 years to the day since Michael Fagan ended up getting inside the Queen's bedroom. There is a genuine theory and very real fear that he could have been launching a copycat operation. The police eventually detained him under the mental health act, but they have to ask some serious questions about how he got on and how he had so long to roam free," the source said.
In 2013, a man had found his way into the palace's state rooms and was arrested for burglary, trespass and criminal damage. He had climbed a 12ft fence.